Russia designates Radio Free Europe and Voice of America as 'foreign agents'

Tue 5 Dec 2017, 8:10 PM AEDT

Photo

The Kremlin, under Vladimir Putin, has denied meddling in elections in the West.

AP: Mikhail Klimentyev, Kremlin

Russia has designated Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) and Voice of America (VOA) as foreign agents, a move aimed at complicating their work in retaliation for what Moscow says is unacceptable US pressure on Russian media.

Key points

US government had put Russian state broadcaster RT on foreign agent registry in November

Russian action against VOA and RFE/RL is in direct retaliation to the move

The US-backed media agencies will be subject to strict rules and spot checks

Russian politicians rushed through the necessary legislation last month and President Vladimir Putin signed off on the measures on November 25.

Russia's justice ministry said in a statement on its website that it was now formally designating the US government-sponsored stations, along with seven separate Russian or local-language news outlets run by RFE/RL, as "fulfilling the role of foreign agents."

They can be subject to spot checks by the authorities to make sure they comply with the rules, according to the 2012 law, which has forced some NGOs to close.

Of the seven other outlets, one provides news on Crimea, which Russia annexed from Ukraine in 2014, one on Siberia, and one on the predominantly Muslim North Caucasus region.

Another covers provincial Russia, one is an online TV station, another covers the mostly Muslim region of Tatarstan, and the other is a news portal that fact-checks the statements of Russian officials.